Rainfall deficiency touches 43 per cent pan India

The overall monsoon deficiency in the country has reached 43 per cent due to its sluggish pace. IMD’s central division — which covers Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Goa — has recorded 59 per cent of rainfall deficiency while east and northeast India has recorded 47 per cent deficiency.

Rainfall deficiency in meteorological subdivisions west and east Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh was 75, 70 and 72 per cent, respectively. Deficiency in Vidarbha is 87 per cent. According to the Central Water Commission, the water level in reservoirs of south Indian states and Maharashtra is lesser than the average of last ten years.

By now, monsoon should have reached the central India, including parts of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, eastern Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat, but it is yet to reach Maharashtra. The western coast - from Maharashtra to Gujarat - has been receiving rainfall due to the cyclone. Only coastal Karnataka and Kerala have received rains due to monsoon, IMD said.

Conditions are becoming favourable for further advance of the southwest monsoon to more parts of central Arabian Sea, Karnataka and remaining parts of Tamil Nadu, the IMD bulletin stated. It is expected to cover more parts of central, north and south Bay, northeast India, north Bengal and Sikkim in a few days.

Parts of north Tamil Nadu continued to experience sizzling temperatures and the Met office on Sunday said severe heat wave conditions were likely to prevail for the next two days in isolated pockets in Tiruvallur, Vellore and Tiruvannamalai districts while parts of nine other districts, including Chennai, Kancheepuram and Cuddalore, would also witness heat wave, the Regional Meteorological Centre said.